CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE MOVEMENT Salt March or Dandi March from 12th March 1930 to 6th April 1930 starting from Sabarmati Ashram to Dandi on the Gujarat coast. In Dandi salt was made by the Indians from the sea by boiling the sea water. There were 78 people who walked 240 miles (340 kms) which took 24 days. On 6th April 1930 at 6:30 am Gandhiji picked up salt from the sea without paying taxes and began the civil disobedience movement. All over India people also did the same in various places. Others pitched in by breaking other laws by not paying taxes and dues to the British government.

CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE MOVEMENT Gandhiji put his eleven demands which and if they were not met by 11th March 1930 then he would launch the Civil Disobedience Movement on the 12th of March 1930. His eleven demands were : 1. Reduce expenditure on army and civil services. 2. Total prohibition. 10. Reduce land revenue by 50% 3. Reforms in CID. 11. Abolish salt tax. 4. Alter Arms Act to allow issue of licences. 5. Release all political prisoners. 6. Accept postal reservation bill. 7. Reduce rupee-sterling exchange ratio. 8. Protective tariff on foreign textile. 9. Reserve coastal shipping for Indians.

CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE MOVEMENT On 2nd March Gandhiji addressed a letter to the Viceroy explaining why he thought the British rule to be a curse“It has impoverished the dumb millions by a system of progressive exploitation … It has reduced us politically to serfdom. It has sapped the foundations of our culture … it has degraded us spiritually” He further informed “ on the 11th day of this month, I shall proceed with such co-workers of the Ashram as I can take to disregard the provisions of the salt laws…. It is, I know, open to you to frustrate my design by arresting me. I hope that there will be tens of thousands ready, in a disciplined manner, to take up the work after me, and, in the act of disobeying the Salt Act to lay themselves open to the penalties of a law that should never have disfigured the Statute book.”

CAUSES OF CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE MOVEMENT Simon Nehru’s Lahore Viceroy’s Eleven 1. SIMON COMMISSION : The failure of the Simon commission an all white commission headed by Sir John Simon failed as it insulted the Indians by not having a single Indian member in it to decide the fate of India’s government. Lala Lajpat died in a protest march against ‘Simon Go Back’ protests due to the lathi charge which hurt him on his chest and head. 2. NEHRU REPORT : Motilal Nehru’s 1928 report highlighting the unity of the Indians against the suggestion of Lord Birkenhead and the passing of the resolution for ‘dominion status’ and that the same should be passed by the British by the end of 1929 put pressure on the British.

CAUSES OF CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE MOVEMENT Simon Nehru’s Lahore Viceroy’s Eleven 3. LAHORE RESOLUTION: The meeting of the Congress in Lahore on 26th December 1929 passing the historic ‘Poorna Swaraj’ declaration with the hoisting of the Indian tricolour was a clear declaration of a steely resolve in black and white by the Congress to brave the odds of the British might. It charged the people to give their best. 4. VICEROY’S OCTOBER 1929 DECLARATION : In October 1929 Viceroy Lord Irwin had given assurance of giving dominion status to India. He had also suggested for a round table conference to decide on the Simon Commission. But he had not given any time frame for the same.

CAUSES OF CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE MOVEMENT Simon Nehru’s Lahore Viceroy’s Eleven 5. GANDHI’S ELEVEN POINTS : Gandhiji had put up eleven demands with the British primary among them being abolition of salt tax, total prohibition,release political prisoners and reform the CID etc

GANDHIJI WITH KHAN ABDUL GHAFFAR KHAN OR ‘FRONTIER GANDHI’, A PASHTUN PATHAN FROM NORTH WEST FRONTIER PROVINCE, IN PRESENT DAY PAKISTAN. KHAN ABDUL GHAFFAR KHAN HAD 50,000 OF HIS NON VIOLENT FOLLOWERS BREAK THE SALT LAW IN PESHAWAR AND HIS SUPPORTERS WERE FIRED UPON BY THE POLICE. THE GARHWAL RIFLES REFUSED TO FIRE UPON THE SATYAGRAHIS AND WERE ARRESTED, FINED AND FACED LIFE IMPRISONMENT FOR DISOBEYING A DIRECT COMMAND.

ROUND TABLE CONFERENCES VENUE : LONDON 1ST ROUND TABLE CONFERENCE: TIME : 16TH NOV 1930 TO 19TH JAN 1931 ATTENDED BY : MUSLIM LEAGUE,HINDU MAHASABHA, LIBERALS AND A FEW PRINCELY STATES. OBJECTIVE : BREAK THE CONSTITUTIONAL DEADLOCK BOYCOTTED BY : INDIAN NATIONAL CONGRESS. RESULT : NOTHING COULD BE DECIDED BECAUSE OF CONGRESS BOYCOTT AND THE BRITISHERS COULD NOT DECIDE WITHOUT THE PARTICIPATION OF THE CONGRESS AS THE CONSTITUTIONAL MATTER WAS OF UTMOST GRAVITY BEYOND THE REACH OF ALL THOSE WHO HAD ATTENDED THE MEETING.ONLY CONGRESS HAD THE UNDERSTANDING AND GRASP TO FINALISE THE CONSTITUTION.

1ST ROUND TABLE CONFERENCE : TIME : 16TH NOV 1930 TO 19TH JAN 1931 ATTENDED BY : MUSLIM LEAGUE, HINDU MAHASABHA, FEW LIBERALS AND SOME PRINCELY STATES 1ST ROUND TABLE CONFERENCE : TIME : 16TH NOV 1930 TO 19TH JAN 1931 BOYCOTTED BY : INDIAN NATIONAL CONGRESS AS MANY LEADERS WERE IN JAIL FOR PARTICIPATING IN THE CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE MOVEMENT OR IN JAIL. RESULT : NOTHING WAS FINALISED AS ONLY CONGRESS HAD THE UNDERSTANDING AND POWER TO DECIDE MATTERS ON FINALISATION OF CONSTITUTION. OTHER PARTIES DID NOT HAVE THE CAPABILITY TO FINALISE IT. PURPOSE : TO BREAK THE CONSTITUTIONAL DEADLOCK IN INDIA.

2ND ROUND TABLE CONFERENCE : TIME : 7TH SEP 1931 TO 1ST DEC 1931 RESULT : FAILURE AS DEADLOCK ON THE MINORITY STATUS OF MUSLIMS AND DEPRESSED CLASSES. NEXT LORD RAMSAY MACDONALD (BRITISH PM) GAVE THE COMMUNAL AWARD IN AUGUST 1932 SAYING THAT THE SEPARATE ELECTORATES OF THE MUSLIMS AND DEPRESSED CLASSES TO CONTINUE UNLESS ANY OTHER AGREEMENT COULD BE REACHED BETWEEN ALL THE PARTIES. GANDHIJI IN PARTICULAR WAS AGAINST THIS ‘COMMUNAL AWARD’ AND PACIFIED DR. B.R. AMBEDKAR TO DROP THE DEMAND OF SEPARATE ELECTORATES IN SEPTEMBER 1932 WHICH WAS KNOWN AS THE ‘POONA PACT’. GANDHI-IRWIN PACT WAS SIGNED ON 5TH MARCH 1931 AFTER WHICH GANDHIJI AGREED FOR THE 2ND ROUND TABLE ONFERENCE. GANDHIJI’S DEMANDS 1. RESPONSIBLE GOVT IN CENTRE AND PROVINCES. 2. CONGRESS ALONE TO REPRESENT INDIA. 3. MUSLIMS AND DEPRRESSED CLASSES NOT TO BE GIVEN SEPARATE ELECTORATE ON THE BASIS OF THEIR MINORITY STATUS.

ROUND TABLE CONFERENCES VENUE : LONDON GANDHI-IRWIN PACT 5TH MARCH 1931(LORD IRWIN BEING THE GOVERNOR GENERAL OF INDIA): RELEASE ALL POLITICAL PRISONERS EXCEPT THOSE GUILTY OF VIOLENCE. RETURN CONFISCATED PROPERTY OF THE PEOPLE. PERMIT PEOPLE NEAR THE SEA COAST TO MAKE THEIR OWN SALT. PERMIT PEACEFUL PICKETING OF FOREIGN AND LIQUOR SHOPS. SUSPEND THE CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE MOVEMENT. ATTEND THE SECOND ROUND TABLE CONFERENCE IN LONDON.

78 PEOPLE DISTANCE : 240 MILES DAYS WALKED : 24 FROM : 12TH MARCH 1930 TO : 6TH APRIL 1930 FROM :SABARMATI ASHRAM TO : DANDI ON THE GUJARAT COAST BROKE SALT LAW ON : 6TH APRIL 1930 TIME : 6:30 A.M. PLACE : DANDI